Chapter 4 Summary and Analysis

Sultana explains the importance in the Muslim faith of a pilgrimage to Makkah (Mecca) during the time of Haj. She performed the pilgrimage many times in her youth. However, Kareem has always expressed an unwillingness to attend, which has exasperated Sultana. One time, Sultana decides to confront Kareem, and they get in a shoving and shouting match. Kareem finally reveals that the reason for his hesitation to make a pilgrimage involves a dream he had. In the dream, he is trampled to death during a pilgrimage to Makkah. He cannot overcome the fear of this dream.

However, after the two take care of Maha in London, Kareem has a change of heart, and even despite the threat of Iranian radicals interrupting the pilgrimage, he agrees to go.

They prepare for the pilgrimage, which involves a purity time called the Ihram, which...